Becoming a successful entrepreneur is difficult, but it’s even more difficult if you’re a college dropout. This week’s guest defines “self-made.” From waiting tables to writing (and re-writing) code to becoming an entrepreneur, he’s also self-taught. In this week’s episode, you’ll hear about Marcus Whitney’s personal roller coaster-and how the ride we call life has made him the person he is today.
Marcus faced a low point after (involuntarily) dropping out of college. How was he going to pick up what was left of his confidence and rebuild the future he knew he wanted?
Over the course of a few years, he worked to get his life back together-and moved to Nashville. He started waiting tables to pay his bills, and then one day, he heard about “coding.” Fascinated by the idea of a skill that could be learned and didn’t require a college degree to earn a decent income, he moved into the tech world-and that’s where his ride takes off.
In this episode, we talk about Marcus’s highest of highs and lowest of lows-and how now, when he looks back, he realizes that immersing himself into technology around the same time as the dotcom boom was the right move for him. If you are in need of a little inspiration, or just a great listen, this interview with Marcus will do the trick.
Favorite Moments
- (9:04) – His mom
- (15:51) – Learning by doing
- (20:07) – Failure
- (29:58) – First website
- (01:05:58) – Four burners
- (01:22:55) – Nashville Football Club
About Marcus Whitney
From college-dropout and waiter to self-taught, successful entrepreneur.
Marcus Whitney is CEO of Health:Further, a strategic advisory firm working with leading healthcare organizations to navigate disruptive change, as well as founding partner of Jumpstart Health Investors, the most active venture capital firm in America focused on a portfolio of more than 100 innovative healthcare companies.
Marcus is also co-founder and minority owner of Major League Soccer team, Nashville Soccer Club.
Marcus has been listed in the Upstart 100 by Upstart Business Journal and Power 100 by Nashville Business Journal and has been featured in Inc., Techcrunch, Fast Company and The Atlantic.
Marcus is the author of Create and Orchestrate, a book about claiming your creative power through entrepreneurship. Marcus is also the producer and host of Marcus Whitney’s Audio Universe, a podcast on all major platforms, as well as Marcus Whitney LIVE, an interview show live-streamed Monday through Friday at 12pm CST on Facebook, YouTube, LinkedIn, Twitter and Twitch. Marcus is a member of the boards of the Country Music Hall of Fame® and Museum, the Nashville Convention and Visitors Corporation and Instruction Partners and is an arts commissioner for the city of Nashville.
